“The fur-lined rut”: telework and career ambition

In this chapter, we present a case study that explores the link between telework usage and career ambition within an organization where remote working is an embedded practice and used by a significant proportion of the workforce. First, this chapter will describe the organizational context for the case study as well as the qualitative and quantitative methods utilized. Next, qualitative and quantitative results detailing the impact of telework on career ambition will be presented. Last, a discussion of the findings, their implications for managers and suggestions as to how organizations might address the challenges associated with telework and career ambition will be presented

IMPACT OF WII-FIT TRAINING ON NEURO-MUSCULAR CONTROL

INTRODUCTION: In the past year, the interactive exercise video game Wii Fit (Nintendo, Tokyo, Japan) has achieved worldwide popularity. This system could be a potential asset for both training and physical therapy purposes; however, there is a lack of scientific validation to justify such applications. As a first step in ascertaining the advantages of the Wii Fit system, the present study is focused on the neuromuscular control changes that occur after 8 weeks of daily training. METHOD: Two healthy subjects (25.5±2.1 years, 177.8±14.37 cm, 71.5±16.26 kg) trained for 30 minutes a day for 8 consecutive weeks using standard Wii Fit strength training, aerobic, and yoga exercises. Before and after the training period, a series of tests were performed (gait, hop, isometric, and one leg stability) while collecting EMG data from the quadriceps (rectus femoris, vastus lateralis, vastus medialis), the hamstrings (biceps femoris and semitendinosus), and the grastrocnemii (lateralis and medialis). The EMG data was linear-enveloped and normalized by a maximum isometric voluntary contraction (MVIC). Similarly to Lloyd et al. (2005), the electromyographic activations were then summed by muscle group to calculate the co-contraction ratio (CCR), which is a value between 0 and 1 that indicates equalizing activation as it increases. RESULTS: Only the right leg data is being reported in this paper. Table 1 displays the CCR for the antagonist coactivations of the hamstrings and quadriceps and also the synergistic activations of the knee flexor muscle groups. It is worth noting that during gait and hopping motions, the ratios are decreased after training, while during the stability tests they increased. Finally, no trend emerged for the isometric data. Table 1 Co-contraction Ratio Maximums (Ext 60 and Flex 60 refer to isometric extesion and flexion at 60°)– values in italics are reciprocals Ext 60 Flex 60 Gait Hop Stability Ham/Quad Coactivation Pre 0.21 0.41 0.17 0.20 0.06 Post 0.46 0.47 0.02 0.06 0.88 Ham/Gast Synergy Pre 0.34 0.47 0.02 0.08 0.04 Post 0.47 0.28 0.01 0.08 0.35 DISCUSSION: After training, the CCR data for dynamic activity indicated more focused muscle control. During the stability tests, much higher CCR values were reported, indicating the muscles were doing a better job achieving a intra-articular equilibrium. CONCLUSION: These preliminary results indicate a promising use of the Wii Fit system for training and physical therapy as on a small population they demonstrated neuromuscular control improvement during dynamic and static trials. REFERENCES: Lloyd, D. G., Buchanan, T. S., and Besier, T. F. (2005). Neuromuscular Biomechanical Modeling to Understand Knee Ligament Loading. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 37, 1939-1947

Endothelial cells, endoplasmic reticulum stress and oxysterols

Oxysterols are bioactive lipids that act as regulators of lipid metabolism, inflammation, cell viability and are involved in several diseases, including atherosclerosis. Mounting evidence linked the atherosclerosis to endothelium dysfunction; in fact, the endothelium regulates the vascular system with roles in processes such as hemostasis, cell cholesterol, hormone trafficking, signal transduction and inflammation. Several papers shed light the ability of oxysterols to induce apoptosis in different cell lines including endothelial cells. Apoptotic endothelial cell and endothelial denudation may constitute a critical step in the transition to plaque erosion and vessel thrombosis, so preventing the endothelial damaged has garnered considerable attention as a novel means of treating atherosclerosis. Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is the site where the proteins are synthetized and folded and is necessary for most cellular activity; perturbations of ER homeostasis leads to a condition known as endoplasmic reticulum stress. This condition evokes the unfolded protein response (UPR) an adaptive pathway that aims to restore ER homeostasis. Mounting evidence suggests that chronic activation of UPR leads to cell dysfunction and death and recently has been implicated in pathogenesis of endothelial dysfunction. Autophagy is an essential catabolic mechanism that delivers misfolded proteins and damaged organelles to the lysosome for degradation, maintaining basal levels of autophagic activity it is critical for cell survival. Several evidence suggests that persistent ER stress often results in stimulation of autophagic activities, likely as a compensatory mechanism to relieve ER stress and consequently cell death. In this review, we summarize evidence for the effect of oxysterols on endothelial cells, especially focusing on oxysterols-mediated induction of endoplasmic reticulum stress

A Novel System for Identification of Inhibitors of Rift Valley Fever Virus Replication

Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) is a human and livestock pathogen endemic to sub-Saharan Africa. We have developed a T7-dependent system for the efficient production of RVFV-like particles (RVF-VLPs) based on the virulent ZH-501 strain of RVFV. The RVF-VLPs are capable of performing a single round of infection, allowing for the study of viral replication, assembly, and infectivity. We demonstrate that these RVF-VLPs are antigenically indistinguishable from authentic RVFV and respond similarly to a wide array of known and previously unknown chemical inhibitors. This system should be useful for screening for small molecule inhibitors of RVFV replication

Fingerprinting the hydration products of hydraulic binders using snapshots from time-resolved in situ multinuclear mas nmr spectroscopy

The very early hydration behavior of a hydraulic binder phase, ye'elimite, Ca4Al6O12SO4, in the absence and in the presence of calcium sulfate, has been investigated. A time-resolved in situ multinuclear magic angle spinning (MAS) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopic suite involving 1H and 27Al MAS as well as two-dimensional 27Al multiple quantum MAS (MQMAS) experiments has been employed to detect the transient species and to govern the sequence of hydration reactions and the subsequent formation of the hydration products. The results of the study show that the rates of formation of ye'elimite hydration products vary substantially according to the absence or the presence of calcium sulfate. Hydrated calcium sulfoaluminate phases such as ettringite and monosulfate as well as aluminum hydroxide gel have been detected during the various stages of hydration. The direct observation of various transient species during the hydration stages of calcium aluminates and calcium sulfoaluminates illustrates the potential of a newly designed time-resolved in situ 1H MAS NMR experimental approach for fingerprinting phases and offers significant advantages over other established techniques in detecting transient species

Quantum Interferences in the Raman Cross Section for the Radial Breathing Mode in Metalic Carbon Nanotubes

The lineshapes of the Raman excitation profiles for radial breathing modes in carbon nanotubes are shown to be strongly affected by interference effects that arise whenever strong optical transitions are separated by a small energy. This is the case in metallic zigzag and chiral tubes, where one-dimensional singularities in the electronic joint density of states are split due to the trigonal warping of the electronic band structure of two-dimensional graphene. It is shown that the proper modeling of these interferences is crucial for the identification of the (n,m) indices using Raman spectroscopy.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figure

Managerial Education in Italy: Main Features and Recent Trends

Developing an effective and a integrity-centered management education system represents a priority. In fact, in an era of relentless change and increasing complexity, the importance of creating a fruitful context for the development of managerial education is increasingly being interpreted as crucial. Our contribution aims at analyzing the main trends and features that characterize the Italian management education system, interpreting them in the light of the prevailing theoretical dimensions debated in the international community and related to the concept of integrity and ethic. In our contribution, firstly, we go back to the concept of managerial work in order to grasp its relationship with management education: our analysis stems from the consideration that analysis of the content of the managerial tasks and its relationship with management education are, undoubtedly, one of the most interesting and debated issues in the organization studies literature. The second main section is focused on the analysis of the concept of management education practices between traditional and critical studies: by this way, we try to provide a wide perspective on the richness and heterogeneity of theoretical contributions that study the concept of management education. Finally, we sketch out the Italian situation, identifying the main peculiarities of management education initiatives. It emerges an interesting and articulated landscape where different typologies of initiatives cohabit , adopting different perspectives (ranging from international and global to extremely country-specific). We conclude underlying the risk that also in Italy we face to a sort of com-modification of knowledge. In fact, there is an attempt made by firms to acquire some sort of control over the system of professional knowledge, transforming knowledge into a specialist commodity characterized by a defined price

A new humanized antibody is effective against pathogenic fungi in vitro

Invasive fungal infections mainly affect patients undergoing transplantation, surgery, neoplastic disease, immunocompromised subjects and premature infants, and cause over 1.5 million deaths every year. The most common fungi isolated in invasive diseases are Candida spp., Cryptococcus spp., and Aspergillus spp. and even if four classes of antifungals are available (Azoles, Echinocandins, Polyenes and Pyrimidine analogues), the side effects of drugs and fungal acquired and innate resistance represent the major hurdles to be overcome. Monoclonal antibodies are powerful tools currently used as diagnostic and therapeutic agents in different clinical contexts but not yet developed for the treatment of invasive fungal infections. In this paper we report the development of the first humanized monoclonal antibody specific for beta-1, 3 glucans, a vital component of several pathogenic fungi. H5K1 has been tested on C. auris, one of the most urgent threats and resulted efficient both alone and in combination with Caspofungin and Amphotericin B showing an enhancement effect. Our results support further preclinical and clinical developments for the use of H5K1 in the treatment of patients in need

Sézary Syndrome: Different Erythroderma Morphological Features with Proposal for a Clinical Score System

Sézary syndrome is a rare subtype of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma characterized by erythroderma, peripheral lymphadenopathies, and circulating atypical cerebriform T-cells. To date, no definite staging system has been developed for these patients. In this retrospective analysis of the archive of the Dermatological Clinic of the University of Turin, Italy, erythrodermic SS patients were classified according to clinical records and photographs into three main presentations: erythematous, infiltrated, or melanodermic. The pattern of erythroderma was found to be associated with disease outcome, as better survivals were recorded in patients with erythematous and infiltrative erythroderma. Patients in the melanodermic group, though less represented in our investigation, seemed to show a worse trend in survival. According to this preliminary evidence, a new prognostic classification, with a revised score specific for Sézary syndrome patients, can be proposed to usefully integrate the current staging system. The correlation displayed in our research will be hopefully confirmed by prospective studies with larger cohorts, with the aim of identifying significant prognostic features in this subset of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma patients

Long-Term Prognostic Impact of Right Ventricular Dysfunction in Patients with COVID-19

The characteristics and clinical course of hospitalized patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have been widely described, while long-term data are still poor. The aim of this study was to evaluate the long-term clinical outcome and its association with right ventricular (RV) dysfunction in hospitalized patients with COVID-19. This was a prospective multicenter study of consecutive COVID-19 patients hospitalized at seven Italian Hospitals from 28 February to 20 April 2020. The study population was divided into two groups according to echocardiographic evidence of RV dysfunction. The primary study outcome was 1-year mortality. The propensity score matching was performed to balance for potential baseline confounders. The study population consisted of 224 patients (mean age 69 \ub1 14, male sex 62%); RV dysfunction was diagnosed in 63 cases (28%). Patients with RV dysfunction were older (75 vs. 67 years, p < 0.001), had higher prevenance of coronary artery disease (27% vs. 11%, p = 0.003), and lower left ventricular ejection fraction (50% vs. 55%, p <0.001). The rate of 1-year mortality (67% vs. 28%; p 64 0.001) was significantly higher in patients with RV dysfunction compared with patients without. After propensity score matching, patients with RV dysfunction showed a worse long-term survival (62% vs. 29%, p <0.001). The multivariable Cox regression model showed an independent association of RV dysfunction with 1-year mortality. RV dysfunction is a relatively common finding in hospitalized COVID-19 patients, and it is independently associated with an increased risk of 1-year mortality